(CBS) Chrisopher Walken has hired a lawyer following the reopening of the investigation into the 1981 death of actress Natalie Wood.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Oscar winner is being represented by Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor who is now a litigation specialist with a Los Angeles law firm.

Wood drowned after spending several hours drinking with her husband, actor Robert Wagner, and Walken, her co-star in the film "Brainstorm," on the couple's yacht anchored off California's Santa Catalina Island.

Sources told THR that Los Angeles Sherriff's Department investigators do not consider Walken to be a suspect.

The website also reports that that Rosengart was hired to advise Walken in the inquiry, and that the actor is expected to cooperate fully.

In the book -- "Goodbye Natalie, Goodbye Splendour" -- Rulli and Splendour Captain Dennis Davern write about the night Natalie drowned. They say before Natalie disappeared from the boat, she was drinking and taking Quaaludes with her husband, Robert Wagner and actor Christopher Walken.

This happened when I was in my late teens. I remember reading about it in thenews. I don't remember heading anything about bruises. I do remember thinking that RW seemed the intense, jealous type. It wouldn't surprise me if NW were more afraid of him that night than the water. I can see her falling in while trying to get away from him and him just watching what was happening.

What kind of fame did behave beyond Hart to Hart and being the guy that NW married?

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Natalie Wood's drowning death nearly 30 years ago came after a night of dinner, drinking and arguments but the question remains - was it anything more than a tragic accident?

Conflicting versions of what happened on the yacht shared by Wood, her actor-husband Robert Wagner and their friend, actor Christopher Walken, have contributed to the mystery of how the actress died on Thanksgiving weekend in 1981. ::snipping2::

Davern's account is dramatically different from what he told investigators after Wood's body was found in 1981, when no mention of an argument between the couple was made. Wood was wearing a nightgown, wool socks and red down coat when she was found floating off Santa Catalina Island.

The renewed investigation comes at a time when plenty of attention was sure to be focused on Wood, whose beauty and acting in films such as "West Side Story" and "Rebel Without a Cause" made her Hollywood royalty. Her death stunned the world and CBS' "48 Hours Mystery" has been looking into the case for a special airing on Saturday.

Sheriff's officials denied the renewed attention prompted their review, which could take months. ::snipping2::

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Natalie Wood's drowning death nearly 30 years ago came after a night of dinner, drinking and arguments but the question remains - was it anything more than a tragic accident?

Conflicting versions of what happened on the yacht shared by Wood, her actor-husband Robert Wagner and their friend, actor Christopher Walken, have contributed to the mystery of how the actress died on Thanksgiving weekend in 1981. ::snipping2::

Davern's account is dramatically different from what he told investigators after Wood's body was found in 1981, when no mention of an argument between the couple was made. Wood was wearing a nightgown, wool socks and red down coat when she was found floating off Santa Catalina Island.

The renewed investigation comes at a time when plenty of attention was sure to be focused on Wood, whose beauty and acting in films such as "West Side Story" and "Rebel Without a Cause" made her Hollywood royalty. Her death stunned the world and CBS' "48 Hours Mystery" has been looking into the case for a special airing on Saturday.

Sheriff's officials denied the renewed attention prompted their review, which could take months. ::snipping2::

Speculation, (thirty years ago) was the Red down coat, kept her from climbing into the boat. The coat would have been heavy from the water.

That was the speculation at the time when she was found. I am puzzled how she untied the knot to the Dingy. She was petite (I believe) the Captain tied the Dingy, as he said he did, I would think it was a a tight knot.

She should have been with her children the Friday after Thanksgving. Her co-star was more important to her than her children. Geez, I thought you took kids to see Santa, the day after Thanksgiving, she did have a small child.

Horsing arround on a boat, when your children need you, I have no idea how these people put their priorities.

I do think she studied her scripts on the boat, (she was going to finish the movie) and she was also scheculed for a role in an upcoming play.

Logged

Wynton Marsalis~"Let us Give, Forgive, and Be Thankful" Zayra is remembered

This happened when I was in my late teens. I remember reading about it in thenews. I don't remember heading anything about bruises. I do remember thinking that RW seemed the intense, jealous type. It wouldn't surprise me if NW were more afraid of him that night than the water. I can see her falling in while trying to get away from him and him just watching what was happening.

What kind of fame did behave beyond Hart to Hart and being the guy that NW married?

The owner of the Splendour, the yacht on which Natalie Wood died during a Thanksgiving weekend cruise with husband Robert Wagner and costar Christophe Walken, said he knew for several weeks that authorities were probing the case.

"I have known for a few weeks that there was going to be a police investigation," said Ron Nelson, who purchased the boat in 1986, in an interview with KHON-TV in Honolulu. "But I didn't know it was going to explode like it did overnight."

L.A. Sheriff's Department officials said they will travel to Hawaii to look at the boat as part of their investigation. Nelson told the news channel he uses the Splendour for charter cruises and was contacted by authorities several weeks ago. He did not reveal details of the conversation. ::snipping2::

Logged

" Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." - Daniel Moynihan

A purported radio interview with Christopher Walken, during which he allegedly discussed the hours preceding the death of Natalie Wood, has turned out to be a hoax.

The Associated Press, which first ran the story Friday, issued a correction shortly thereafter, noting that the voice actually belonged to a station employee impersonating Walken.

The faux interview took place on ESPN980, a Washington, D.C.-based sports talk radio station. According to Washington-based site TBD.com, the voice actually belongs to Marc Sterne, who does weekly impersonations of the actor on the station's "The Tony Kornheiser Show."More...

Logged

" Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." - Daniel Moynihan

The final report on her death settled on story that Natalie slipped on an algae covered step and falling into the water while trying to tie down the dingy. This is the official report of how itís believed Natalie met her death.

The lead detective at the heart of Natalie Wood's original 1981 downing investigation tells CBS News that he would have "arrested" Robert Wagner "personally," had he "had the evidence" that Wagner killed his wife.

Speaking exclusively to "48 Hours" for the program "Vanity Fair: Hollywood Scandal," airing Saturday, Nov. 19 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS, Duane Rasure, a retired detective sergeant for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homicide Bureau, says that during his investigation into the Natalie Wood case, he "never really got suspicious of a murder.""All the questions, all the investigation I did-- just related to she accidentally fell off the back of their boat," Rasure tells "48 Hours" for its Saturday night broadcast.

"It was an accidental drowning, she just happened to be a famous movie star. She was a small lady. She drowned in short time, I'd say," Rasure says.

And Dennis Davern is not telling the full truth, according to Rasure. The detective sergeant, who has been at the heart of a number of Hollywood murder cases, tells "48 Hours" that Davern "just made himself look good in his book."If I have ever the slightest inkling there was a murder, something suspicious, I would have worked it," Rasure says. "I did not cover for anybody and I wouldn't cover for anybody. I don't care about their celebrity status. They were people."

Rasure tells "48 Hours" that his 1981 investigation was conducted over a period of several weeks. Much more...

Logged

" Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." - Daniel Moynihan

The lead detective at the heart of Natalie Wood's original 1981 downing investigation tells CBS News that he would have "arrested" Robert Wagner "personally," had he "had the evidence" that Wagner killed his wife.

Speaking exclusively to "48 Hours" for the program "Vanity Fair: Hollywood Scandal," airing Saturday, Nov. 19 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS, Duane Rasure, a retired detective sergeant for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Homicide Bureau, says that during his investigation into the Natalie Wood case, he "never really got suspicious of a murder.""All the questions, all the investigation I did-- just related to she accidentally fell off the back of their boat," Rasure tells "48 Hours" for its Saturday night broadcast.

"It was an accidental drowning, she just happened to be a famous movie star. She was a small lady. She drowned in short time, I'd say," Rasure says.

And Dennis Davern is not telling the full truth, according to Rasure. The detective sergeant, who has been at the heart of a number of Hollywood murder cases, tells "48 Hours" that Davern "just made himself look good in his book."If I have ever the slightest inkling there was a murder, something suspicious, I would have worked it," Rasure says. "I did not cover for anybody and I wouldn't cover for anybody. I don't care about their celebrity status. They were people."

Rasure tells "48 Hours" that his 1981 investigation was conducted over a period of several weeks. Much more...

I do not think anyone killed NW.

Logged

Wynton Marsalis~"Let us Give, Forgive, and Be Thankful" Zayra is remembered

Roger Smith, the paramedic who took Natalie Wood's body to shore, claims that her fingers were still pliable and rigor mortis had not yet set in.

Roger Smith: "I think she was at least alive for three of the hours, hanging on that skiff. ...With our equipment and everything...and our expertise we would've found her. And she would still be alive today."

Thank you for the article seahorse. It's a real shame if Natalie Wood was possibly alive for as long as the paramedic estimated. She may have been saved, and hanging on to the side of a small boat in dark cold water for hours would have been torturous before demise. And even if she did fall into the water by accident, why did Robert Wagner wait for hours to call for help? He may not have pushed her in the water we don't know, but if he waited hours to report it, he possibly contributed to her death if she could have been found imo.

Logged

" Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." - Daniel Moynihan

'He looked at me as I said it and he just looked down': Rescuer tells of moment he told Robert Wagner of Natalie Wood's death as he reveals spot where he found her body

Witness on another boat said she could hear a woman struggling in the water Ship's captain says death is 'linked to an argument' she had with actor husband Robert Wagner Ms Wood's sister claims Natalie hated water as she believed she would meet her death by drowning Autopsy revealed two dozen bruises on her body Police may use new DNA technology in a new investigation into the deathMore...(Lots of photos in article)

Logged

" Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." - Daniel Moynihan